Dear Public Health Wales,

Background: I refer to this document dated 27 April 2021 : FAQs on using single use FFP3 RPE for hospital staff” issued by your Healthcare Associated Infection & Antimicrobial Resistance programme (HARP):
https://phw.nhs.wales/topics/latest-info...

At section 2.2 you comment on the fact that Healthcare Workers were provided with Respiratory Protective Equipment (RPE) which “appear to have out-of-date ‘use by/expiration dates’ or have re-labelled dates". By way of comment, I don’t know why you say “appear to be out of date” – they WERE out of date (actually many years out of date).

My FoI enquiry relates to the assurance that you gave “Please be assured that products … have passed stringent tests that demonstrate they are safe.”
There are 3 main elements to my FoI request:
1) Please would you provide the documents which PHW relied upon to form the conclusion that they were safe. These should confirm:
a) whether the laboratory/laboratories which conducted the tests were UKAS-accredited for this type of testing;

b) how many respirators were issued to staff in Wales which were beyond their expiry date (as originally marked on the packaging, not the ‘re-label’);

c) the actual number of respirators tested BY PUBLIC HEALTH WALES (or laboratories it used) and how PHW ensured that the sample was statistically representative of the total number of masks issued i.e. (b) above;

d) that the test methods set out in EN 149:2001+A1:2009 were used or, if not, precisely what test methodology was used.

e) If Public Health Wales did not carry out any testing itself but relied upon testing carried out by other UK authorities (e.g. Public Health England) then please provide the laboratory reports that they provided you with. If this is the case then please indicate whether it was
(i) that other UK authority which assured you that the tests showed that the respirators were safe for use; or
(ii) or whether it was Public Health Wales’ own interpretation of the laboratory reports that the respirators were safe for use.

2) Please would you also confirm the full range of manufacturers involved (e.g. 3M, others?) and provide me with copies of any correspondence that you had with those manufacturers (as the experts in their products) about the continuation of use beyond the expiry date.

3) Please would you provide copies of any correspondence that you had with the HSE concerning the continuation of use beyond the expiry date.

Yours faithfully,
David Osborn

Dear Public Health Wales,

Further to your automated reply, just received, I confirm that I have read the notice therein and "I have done all that I think I reasonably can and my request cannot be delayed". Please, therefore progress the request within the timescales provide by law (20 working days) if necessary by engaging additional resource to meet your legal obligations. I'm afraid "we will attempt to process your request as soon as we can" is not good enough.

All matters relating to the management of Covid-19 in Wales are of paramount importance - witness the current outbreak in the hospital in Swansea where, on the face of it, the most basic precautions for preventing and containing outbreaks do not appear to be being observed. In this respect you need to get "on the case" without delay in order to protect, not just the public, but the healthcare workers who are at risk from the outbreak.

Yours faithfully,

David Osborn